Ratchet wrenches are used to turn a tool, screw or other component. This kind of hand tool is often used in mechanical engineering, in different environments and hence there are many different developed ratchet wrenches. Usually a ratchet wrench is equipped with some kind of lever for change of the rotational direction, this makes the tool complex and requests many parts.
There are a number of different ratchet wrenches on the market, generally they are difficult to dismount and/or comprises many parts, complex design or long narrow bore, which make washing/cleaning/sterilization time consuming or more even impossible. Washing/cleaning/sterilization is important for the function of a tool, but also of great importance when used in a clean environment, for example at surgery when a tool is used in an sensitive environment.
For example the tool described in US 2005/0268751 is not designed for disassembly and has further a number of narrow gaps and lose parts which makes cleaning very difficult.
Also the ratchet wrench described in GB 250127 is difficult to clean since it is designed with for example a fixed joint.
Both tools described in the documents mentioned above (US 2005/0268751, GB 250127) are dependent on the friction for their operation.